Everyone has a Secret, but Can they Keep it?
by zdzislawa
Summary: Magda is left wandering the streets after a fight with her parents, but will it turn to be a fight for her life?
1. Chapter 1

_**Magda was walking along the side of the road. There was no sidewalk along this stretch, but that was alright. Hardly any cars drove down this road at this time of day. Magda looked down at her slender wrist, on which sat her watch, and verified the time at 3:47 in the morning. She shivered as she clutched at her thin sweater.**_

_**Magda saw the hint of light coming up behind her, and turned around. As she turned, she stuck out her thumb. She didn't think the car would stop, and she didn't care. It's not like she had to be anywhere. As the car slowed down, Magda stopped walking. She recognized the car as a Dodge as it approached.**_

"_**Where are you headed?" the stranger asked. He looked to be about 21 years old, and had a gorgeous set of hazel eyes, topped off with a curly mop of light brown hair.**_

"_**How far are you going?" Magda asked. She flipped her long auburn hair over her shoulder in a flirty way. She wanted to get as far as she could with him. He was only at most, 3 years older than she was.**_

"_**Well, I am going into the next town, and then a little farther. Are you just looking for a ride into town?" The stranger asked.**_

"_**Well, if you wouldn't mind taking me with you as far as you're going," Magda said. He looked Magda up and down, as if looking for anything that she may be carrying with her. Luggage, a purse, any weapon. He couldn't see any on her.**_

"_**Get in," he said to her, while unlocking the doors to the car. Magda got in, and closed the door.**_

"_**So, what's your name?" Magda asked the stranger, eying him up and down.**_

"_**Ben," he answered. He looked at her for a couple of seconds, and then back at the road. "What about yours?"**_

"_**Magda. Short for Magdalene, but I hate that name…" Magda replied. She mentally smacked herself. Why did I say that? **_**she asked herself. **_**It's almost like I am nervous.**_** Magda, when she got nervous, started chattering, telling people information they didn't need to know.**

"**I like that name," Ben said. "By the way, I am 22, and I actually live a couple towns down this road, back the way I came from." She nodded, and looked around the car, noting what in the car. There were a couple of sets of clothes lying on the back seat, CD's lying all around on the floor and the dash. Magda continued looking around until Ben started snapping his fingers in her face.**

"**Oh, sorry," she said, distracted. "What do you want to know?" She just looked at him until she saw he wasn't going to say what he wanted to know. She sighed, and decided to tell him a brief summary.**

"**Fine, I'll tell you some tid bits of information, if that's what you want," she said while smiling. "My name is Magda, I am 18 years old. I live back down the road a couple of towns too. Well, lived. I don't really live anywhere anymore." She sighed, and brushed her auburn hair out of her pale blue eyes.**

"**What about your family?" Ben asked, blandly.**

"**What about them?" Magda asked. She looked at him and he looked at her. "They kicked me out. My parents found coke in my room and kicked me out." She looked at her watch. It was 4:05 now.**

"**Let me guess, you were holding on to it for a friend?" Ben asked.**

"**No, it was mine. I was trying it with an ex boyfriend of mine. I tried it once, and decided that I didn't like it. He dumped me soon after, but I forgot about the coke." Magda shrugged and shifted in her seat so that she could look out the passenger window.**

"**Really?" Ben asked. Magda didn't answer. She sat quietly looking out the window. He hoped he would just drop the subject.**

"**So, where are you really headed?" Ben asked.**

"**I don't know. I am just headed wherever I end up, I guess," Magda answered.**

"**So you have no where to stay, do you?" Ben asked. Again, Magda didn't answer again. They rode in silence until they got into the next town.**

"**Here's a deal," Ben said, and Magda turned to look at him. "You need a place to stay, right?" Ben waited for a answer out of Magda. Magda simply nodded her head. "You seem like a nice girl. How about if you come and stay with me for a little while?" Magda didn't answer.**

"**Why would I come and stay with you?" Magda asked. She looked at him suspiciously, trying to decide whether or not he was lying.**

"**Look, I have to go to work today at the factory. If you can wait in my car until I am done at 2 this afternoon, you can stay at my place. If you decide not to, just leave when I get to work." Ben looked at her, and tried to decide if she looked happy about this, or indifferent. He decided that she looked more indifferent. **

"**Well, I guess we will have to see," was the answer that Magda finally said. They drove in silence until Ben pulled into the parking lot of the factory.**

"**I am going into work now," said Ben as he turned off the car. "If you want to come with me to my place after I get off work, you'll meet me here at 2." He turned around in his seat and grabbed his lunch box. "If you aren't here when I go to leave, I will assume that you decided to go somewhere else, and if I don't see you, good luck." He opened the door, stepped out, and closed it again. Magda sat in the car, thinking of her options.**


	2. Chapter 2

Madga was still sitting in Ben's car by the time the sun rose. She had fallen asleep in the seat shortly after Ben left her. She was tired. Magda had been kicked out earlier the previous day, and had been walking since then. As the sun broke the horizon, Magda stirred in her seat, and slowly began to wake up.

Opening her eyes, she was startled to find herself in a car. She almost began to panic, except for the fact that she realized that she was in that guy's car. _Ben, I think. That's his name._ She stretched out and sat up straight. _2 hours of sleep… Great._ she thought.

Magda started weighing her options. Didn't Ben offer her a place to stay for a while? She was pretty sure that Ben wouldn't mind her being there. He seemed like a pretty cool guy. Magda made her decision. She go out of the car, and walked around it. The car, she identified as an older Dodge Shadow. It was green and had rust spots all over it. _It should be easy to find again, _she thought. Magda was going to walk around, see where she was, and possibly find something to eat.

Magda started walking towards the parking lot entrance. While walking, she looked at her watch. It was shortly past seven. She had about 7 hours or less to get back to the car, and catch a ride with Ben. When she got to the parking lot exit, she looked up and down the road. Magda knew exactly where she was.

This town was fairly big, and the factory was just on the edge of town. If she went left, she would head out of town. If she headed right, she would end up in the town. She chose to go right, and started walking towards town. With any luck, she would be able to find a place to eat.

A couple hours later, Magda was sitting in a Tim Hortons, drinking a coffee, trying to decide what she would do next. She had limited money on her, since she hadn't had a job in about a year. She needed a few pieces of clothing to take with her to Ben's. _I guess I am going to have to go to the thrift store… _she thought. She got up from her table and with her coffee in her hand, she started walking up the street.

Magda, being fairly she sure she knew where a thrift store was in this town, started towards the street she thought the store would be on. When she got there, she purchased a couple of pairs of pants, a couple of shirts, and other things, and headed out again. Deciding that she was done what she had to do in town, Magda headed back towards the factory. She would wait in the car until Ben got back.

Once she got back to the car, she threw her new clothes in the back, and climbed into the passenger seat again. She fell asleep again. While she slept, she didn't dream. She just drifted off, waiting for when Ben, the gorgeous guy that picked her up in the middle of the night and gave her a ride. She waited for his to come, wake her up, and help her get her life back in order.


	3. Chapter 3

Magda jumped when she heard a slam. Her eyes flung open, and she looked up and saw Ben smiling at her from the driver seat.

"So, you decided to come along?" Ben asked hopefully.

"Yeah," answered Magda, sleepily. "That's why I came back." She stretched and ground at her eyes. Ben started the car and dropped it into drive. While leaving the parking lot Magda turned and looked at Ben, with a questioning look on her face.

"What is it?" Ben asked, looking over at her puzzled.

"What do you do in there?" she asked outright.

"What does it matter?" Ben asked. Magda sat straight in the seat and looked ahead.

"I guess it doesn't," she replied moodily. They sat without speaking for the next couple of minutes. It seemed like an eternity. Passing through the next town, Magda turned to him and opened her mouth to say something, but quickly shut it and turned to face the front again.

"What did you end up doing today?" Ben asked, trying to start a conversation. He didn't mean to be rude to Magda, but what was he supposed to say? He scrubs toilets all day. It's embarrassing to admit that, especially to a hot younger girl. "You couldn't have stayed here all day, did you?"

"No, I didn't," Magda answered. "I went into town… and then I came back," she said, giving him about as much information about her day, as he gave to her.

"Alright…" Ben said. He kept driving, but Magda could cut the tension in the car with a knife.

The rest of the drive went by in silence. When they approached the town that Ben lived in, he announced it happily.

"This is my place," Ben said. They pulled into the parking lot of the apartment complex that he lived in. He pulled into his parking space, and turned off the car.

"This is better than where I would have ended up last night," stated Magda, matter-of-factly. She opened the door to the car, and stepped out, grabbing her earlier purchases on the way.. Ben got out of the car, and locked the doors.

"This way, Magda," Ben said, leading her up the front walk. Magda hesitated for a second, and decided that it was probably best to go along with him. Together, Magda and Ben walked up the stairs to the third floor, and down the hall.

"Here we are," Ben said, cheerily. He pulled out his key, and Magda noted that the apartment number was C6. The building didn't look terrible, it looked average. When Ben opened the door, she gasped.

"Um, what is that?" Magda asked, pointing to a heap on the floor.

"Oh, that's my roommate," Ben said quickly. He quickly strode over and kicked the heap on the floor. "Get up, idiot!" Ben whispered harshly.

"What the f.uck!" the roommate yelled. He rolled onto his side to look up at Ben. Then he looked over to the door, which was still ajar. "Oh, wait. Whoozat?"

"I'm Magda, and I'm not sure I should be here now," she said. She looked around the rest of the apartment. Typical male apartment. Mess everywhere. At least this gave Magda a way to repay Ben for being so nice.

"Sure you should be. I invited you, didn't I?" Ben said. "It's not your fault James is dense." So that was his name.

"Whatever, man," said James as he crawled over all the garbage and other items on the floor.

"Magda," Ben said shyly, "Um, I'll sleep on the couch, and you can have my bed, if you want." Magda giggled.

"I'm just happy I have a place to stay. I'll crash on the couch, if that's alright with you," she answered. Magda started pulling items off the couch and putting them on the ground around the couch.

"Alright, well, I'm going to go for a quick nap, alright," said Ben. "Help yourself to anything you want in the kitchen."

"Should I be afraid to go in there?" asked Magda, feigning terror. She giggled and sat down on the couch, facing Ben.

"No, I don't think so," said Ben. "If you keep mocking me, I may get a complex." This earned another fit of giggles from Magda.

"Well, if you're going for a nap, I guess I will to. 'Night Ben." With that, Ben went to his room, and Magda laid down on he couch. Sighing, she closed her eyes, and fell asleep.


	4. Chapter 4

"Wake up!" yelled Ben. At least, Magda thought it was Ben. Her petite frame bounced off of the couch when Ben pounced on her.

"What the h.ell?" Magda asked, rubbing at her eyes. She slowly got up off the floor, and managed to get up and sit on the couch.

"Well, you wouldn't wake up by me shaking you. I had to resort to desperate measures," laughed Ben. "No, really, it's 7 and we need to eat dinner." He got up and went to go and put on his shoes.

"Where are you going?" asked Magda. "Are we not going to eat here?"

"Are you kidding?" Ben asked. "We have no food here!" Before Magda could say anything, Ben interrupted her. "Yes, we have food, but home food is boring! Come on, get your shoes on."

As Magda got her shoes on, she thought about James. "Where is James?"

"He had to go to work," Ben answered simply. "He works from 5 until 2 in the morning. We basically work opposite schedules." Ben shrugged and went to put on his jacket.

"Oh," replied Magda. They both got on their shoes and headed out the door. The two walked in silence until they got downstairs and out the door.

"We're going to walk, alright?" suggested Ben. Magda shrugged and followed him. Idle chit chat ensued, basically still trying to get to know each other a little bit better. The "where are you from, what are you about" kind of questions.

They arrived at the restaurant that Ben had in mind. Subway.

"Ahh, I love this place!" Magda exclaimed. She skipped ahead of Ben and through the door to the restaurant. Ben followed her. They ordered their dinner and sat at one of the tables in the corner.

"So," Magda said in between bites, "do you work tomorrow?" Ben nodded, and kept eating. "So, you're not going to actually have a conversation with me now that there is food in front of us?" Ben nodded again. "It's nice to see that food is more important than me." She sniffed and acted like she was really hurt by him. She bent over her food again, and they ate the rest of their dinner in silence.

"Well, I'm done," stated Ben, getting together his garbage. Magda just finished too, and started to get up. They deposited their trash in the garbage, and headed out the door. Halfway down the block, Ben started talking again.

"So, what do you want to do now?"

"I don't know," answered Magda after a couple of seconds of thought. "Want to just go back to your place and watch a movie?"

"Um, sure. We may need to rent one though, I don't have many," said Ben.

"Aww, you suck. Back when I was at home, I had just about every movie. I'm a junkie, I confess." Magda laughed.

"We're going to have to go this way then," said Ben pointing to the left, when they were about to turn right.

"Alright then. Let's go." Ben grabbed her arm and led her down the alley. Just as they were halfway down the alley, Ben turned to her, and pushed her up against the wall.

"What's up," Magda asked, puzzled. Ben took her upper arms in his hands, and just looked at her in a way that he hadn't so far. It was a sort of crazed look that scared Magda.

"What do you mean 'what's up'?" Ben asked back, and tightened his grip on her. Magda tried to get her arm free, but couldn't. He was taller, and stronger than her. What's going to happen to me? Magda though to herself, as she tried not to let her eyes give away the panic in her mind.


	5. Chapter 5

If it was even possible, Ben pushed harder against Magda's arms. If she didn't have giant purple bruises on her arms after this encounter, then she would be very lucky.

"What are you doing?" asked Magda, a slight quiver in her voice. She cursed herself silently, for showing a sign of weakness in that quiver.

"Well, you're hot," said Ben trailing off. After a minute of thinking, he finally finished his thought. "You're going to repay me for being nice to you, aren't you? If you didn't, that would be very rude, wouldn't it?" He brought his face down to her level. Magda could feel his hot breath on her face as his eyes wandered over her body.

"But we were having fun," Magda breathed, searching for strings to pull to stop what could be happening to her. "I thought we were having fun."

"Perhaps you were," Ben shrugged. "I wasn't. I was thinking about what a good lay you would be." At this, he pushed himself up against her. She could feel his erection against her leg. Magda shuddered inwardly.

He backed off a little, and pushed his mouth against hers roughly. She winced as he ground her inner lip against her teeth. She faintly tasted her own blood. He pulled away.

"So," he grinned wolfishly. "What do you think?" Magda sighed and closed her eyes to prevent tears being shed. "Alright, let's go back to my place." Ben grabbed her hand and squeezed to the point of making bones grind. Again, Magda winced in pain, but would not let Ben see that he was hurting her.

They walked the several blocks to get to his apartment, Magda silently following him. She really wanted to cry right about now. Magda had liked Ben. After a couple of days of living with him, she could see them become good friends. But not like this.

They walked up the front path up to the front door of the apartment building, and up the stairs. To keep herself from thinking about what might happen once they got behind closed doors, Magda counted the stairs up to the third floor. 34, 35, 36... There were 123 in total, but she wouldn't remember that.

Ben kept a firm hand on Magda as he fumbled with his keys. While trying to get the right one, his grip on Magda's wrist loosened the slightest bit. Now's my chance, she thought. She tried to wrench her wrist free, but in the process had her wrist gripped the hardest so far. She let out a pained gasp as her wrist was crushed in his hand.

"Don't try to be cute," said Ben with a warning in his tone. He finally opened the apartment door and shoved Magda through the door. Once they were both inside, Ben turned and dead bolted the door. He turned to her, and looked at her once again with a crazed look. Magda was very scared now. She had ideas of what was going to happen to her. And she also had ideas that they were going to happen, no matter how hard she struggled. That was the thing. He was bigger than her, and she was small.

"Go to my room," said Ben. Magda stood there for a couple of minutes, stunned to silence. Ben looked at her with warning in his eyes. She got the hint, and did as she was told. Maybe if she co-operated, he wouldn't hurt her more than he already had.

He entered the room after several of the most agonizing minutes of Magda's life, and started to take off his shirt.

"You'd better follow suit, doll," said Ben looking at her in a greedy way. Magda shuddered and did as she was told, too scared not to.

He pushed her onto the messy bed and climbed in between her legs. He started to forcefully kiss her again, greedily. Magda blanked her mind, and went to her happy place, where Ben couldn't reach her. Whatever happened in this reality, would not happen to her in her pretend reality. Nothing could hurt her there.


	6. Chapter 6

Magda had been hurt before. Someone she had loved hurt her. She thought they did love her, but all they had in mind for her was to hurt her. It was her ex-boyfriend.

They had been dating for a couple of months, and things seemed to be going great. She had been 16, and in love with an 18 year old. She thought he loved her for her. They got along great, and things were progressing at a steady pace. They kissed on their second date, they were progressing physically to the point where he had taken her virginity. And she let him take it, thinking he loved her.

He didn't. And the day after he took her virginity, he changed. He became more aggressive. He started using any excuse to get her into bed. Whenever she tried to get him to go out with her and do other things, he would refuse. Sometimes he would hit her until she did as he wanted her to do.

This went on for almost a year, until her mom found a large green, fading bruise on her daughter's side. They moved immediately to another town, but that didn't change what had happened.

Magda went to therapy to get over the sexual abuse she had sustained for the months of their relationship. It had helped, and had put the abuse out of her mind. Every couple of months she would have a nervous breakdown because of it, but that had been almost 2 years, but again, that doesn't take away the hurt.

Often Magda had retreated to this other world in her abusive relationship. That was when she cam up with it. It helped her through some hard times. In this world, she was in her room, curled up in her bed, with her favourite comforter that was made for her when she was 7 by her grandma that died when she was 11. It was her favourite colour of green, and it was her security blanket.

In her other reality, she could hear her favourite music playing, which was comforting. Now she was doing it again. Several times, she caught herself humming songs while being abused by her ex, and he would hit her. Now, she also refrained. She knew Ben would hit her if she did anything but comply with his demands.

In her other reality, she could not here the demands, but in the real reality, she complied with whatever the attacker wanted her to do.

So, here she was. It was like a flash back. She was using her Safe Place again, while being attacked, again. Emotionally, Magda would not be alright. Physically, Magda would not be alright. All together, she was going to be wrecked until she escaped Ben, and then, she wouldn't be alright for a long time after. Magda decided in her other reality, that she needed to find a way out of this prison of an apartment. And not just to her Safe Place, but to where she could get help.

Magda decided that she would have to talk to James while Ben went to work. He might be able to help her escape. And if not, she would have to help herself, which is what she was used to.


	7. Chapter 7

Ben got up, and left the room, leaving Magda dazed on the bed. She turned onto her side and listened as the shower was turned on in the bathroom across the hall. I can't believe that just happened, thought Magda, as a tear rolled down her cheek. She quickly wiped it away, feeling ashamed of it.

She rolled onto her other side, to look out the window. It was now raining. Nature was venting Magda's feelings that she couldn't bring herself to show. This made Magda feel even more helpless. She lay there in silence, slowly bringing herself back from her Safe Place.

A few minutes later, Magda heard the shower being turned off, and Ben coming back. Magda put her hands over her face and lay there, still on the bed, waiting to see what would happen now. Ben came into the room, grabbed some clean clothes, and left the room. Magda breathed a sigh of relief. Being in the same room as Ben right now was going to break her emotionally. Slowly getting up, Magda walked across the room, and headed for a shower. She made sure the door was closed and locked behind her.

Turning on the water, Magda made it as hot as she could bear, and stepped in, closing the curtain. She stood there in the scalding water as she cleansed herself. She just stood there in the water, occasionally turning, for 20 minutes. At this point, all her skin was a bright red, and she felt a little bit better about her situation.

Magda got out of the shower and wrapped herself in a towel. Carefully, she unlocked the door, and looked down the hall towards the living room where she was supposed to sleep. Ben was sitting on the couch, watching the tv. Quietly, Magda closed the bathroom door, locking it again.

Now, Magda allowed herself to cry. Once she started, she found she had a difficult time stopping. Slowly, her sobs made her sink to the floor and curl into a ball. She stayed that way until she heard the door across the hall close for the night. Grabbing a hold of the bathroom counter, Magda hoisted herself off the floor, and into a kneeling position. She unlocked the door again, and peered out. Ben's door was definitely closed, and the living room was empty.

Slowly getting to her feet, Magda walked to the kitchen to get a glass of water. Drinking down the first one, she filled the cup again, and brought it into the living room with her. She lowered herself onto the couch, and curled up in her blankets on the couch. Shivering slightly, she tried her best to get to sleep, but sleep would not come quickly to her, it seemed.

Magda wanted to go home. She wanted to make up with her mom, she wanted to have her security blanket wrapped around her, and she wanted the pain from the rape to go away, even for a little while, just to let her sleep.

Thinking about home, Magda laid on the couch for a couple of hours, and finally, in a quick swoop, uneasy sleep came to her, and she was safe again for the time being. No one can hurt you in your dreams, unless you let them.

It seemed like Magda just got to sleep when she heard a door open and shut in what seemed like a far away place, when it was really about 10 feet away. James just got home from work, and Magda was sure glad to see him stroll through the doorway. Trying to be quiet, James took off his shoes and jacket, and hung up his keys. Magda quickly got together what she was going to say to him when he glanced in her direction and saw she was awake.

"Hey Magda, what's up?"


	8. Chapter 8

Magda started to silently cry. She put a hand over her eyes and her arm over her hand. James was stunned into silence. He closed the distance between them in several long strides and sat down on the floor beside her head.

"What happened?" James whispered to her. He hoped he sounded compassionate. He didn't really know what to do. Magda still wept, but took her hand off her face. She looked him right in the eye as a new wave of sobs came over her.

Not knowing what else to do, James put his arms around her and shushed her softly. Slowly, Magda calmed down, until her sobs were just hiccups.

"Do you want to tell me what happened?" asked James softly. Magda shook her head, and cuddled in closer to James. James sat in his place, stroking her hair, and occasionally shushing, trying his best to sound comforting. For several minutes, they stayed like this, until James went to move.

"Hun, I have to go to bed," he said softly. "You can come with me, or stay on the couch. Your choice." James started to stand up, and felt something grab at his work shirt. He looked down to see Magda with the saddest expression he had ever seen on her face. He reached out his hand, and Magda took it. Slowly, she sat up and followed him to the only room she hadn't seen yet.

"So, you're going to stay with me tonight," he said, letting go of her hand. He climbed onto his bed, and motioned for her to join him. Hesitating slightly, she went to him, and laid down beside him. He put his arm around her waist, and held her hand. This time she had no problem falling to sleep.

..A few hours later..

The door to James' room was slammed inwards. In the doorway stood a fuming Ben. He flicked on the light and stood there, staring at Magda and James in bed.

"What the h.ell is this?!" Ben shouted. Magda flinched and curled into a ball. James sat up and looked straight at Ben.

"What does it look like?" asked James in a calm voice.

"What the f.uck do you think you're doing, b.itch?!" boomed Ben. Magda flinched and tried to ecsape to her Safe Place.

"She was upset in the middle of the night, and she wanted some company if that's alright with you," said James coldly. He tried his best to position himself between Magda and Ben.

"She was upset, was she," said Ben in an I'm-pretending-to-be-calm voice. "What reason would she have for being upset. I wonder?" Ben started to stroke his chin in pretend thought.

"I don't know why she was upset, she wouldn't tell me," stated James. Magda sat up at this and tried to think of something to say.

"I had a nightmare," Magda said. "Just as James walked in, I woke up from it. I was shaken, and that's it. All that bothered me was a nightmare." James looked at her quizzically, and turned back to Ben.

"As long as all you had was a bad dream," said Ben. "James, can I talk to you?" Ben turned and left and James moved off the bed.

"I want you to tell me what really happened," James whispered to her. "Alright?" Magda nodded. James looked at her for a second longer, and left the room. Magda laid back down, and began to cry again. This was the most she had cried all her life, all in one lousy day.


End file.
